Oakland Ballers celebrate their win over the Rocky Mountain Vibes at Raimondi Park in Oakland on Thu Jul 10, 2025 (Oakland Ballers photo)
Rocky Mountain Vibes (22-22) 121 010 000 5 9 1
Oakland Ballers (34-11) 002 201 01x 6 6 0
Time: 2:18
Attendance: 2,008
Thursday, July 10, 2025
By Lewis Rubman
OAKLAND–After being thwarted late Wednesday afternoon by a lost challenge on what would have been a game ending strike out followed by crushing defeat in the knockout round crap shoot the Pioneer League uses to decide tie games, the Ballers had to wait until 8:53 this Thursday evening to break the tie for first place with a 6-5 triumph over the Rocky Mountain Vibes and— thanks to the Ogden Raptors’ defeat of the Missooula Paddleheads a bit before that— gain not just a playoff spot, but home field advantage against whomever they face in the full season tournament scheduled for early September to determine the league’s champion.
They did it in stirring fashion, overcoming a poor start by Dylan Matsuoka, who surrendered four runs, all earned, in as many innings. Half of the six hits he yielded went yard. The Rocky Mountain Vibes, the team that had stymied the B’s a day earlier, took the lead on a mighty blast over the center field fence by Sam Linscott, the second Vibe batter, tacked on two runs in the second on a two run round tripper by ex-Baller Steven Wilmer (batting .218 at the time), and Gary Lora’s leadoff four bagger in the third.
Oakland got on the board in the third plating two tallies on Tremayne Cobb’s double to right and Christian Almanaza’s opposite field homer to left and tied things up an inning later Nick Leehey’s two run homer to left. The Vibes came back with Carter Booth’s solo shot, a line drive over the left field fence off Gabe Tanner, who had relieved Matsuoka.
The home team caught up in their half of the sixth, notching a run after Danny Harris led off with a single and advanced 90 feet on each of two consecutive balks before Rocky Mountains’ starter, Malik Binns, was able to throw a pitch. Lou Helmig’s opposite field single to left through a partially drawn in infield brought in the tying run. a walk to Nick Leehay, and Binns was on his way to the showers, replaced by Wyatt Tucker.
James Colyer set the Vibes down in order in the seventh.
Oakland finally, and definitively, took the lead in their half of the eighth. Hunter Bryn took the rubber to relieve Tucker at the start of the inning. He walked Harris, who was erased when Cam Bufford’s grounder to third forced Harris out at second. But the speedy Bufford beat the throw to first and then stole second. Another single by Helmig, this time to right, drove in Bufford with what proved to be the winning run.
Carson Lambert, probably the league’s best reliever, didn’t allow a baserunner in the two innings he hurled, fanning five of the six batters he faced on the way to earning his second win against no losses.
Friday’s encounter with the Vibes will start at 6:35. It may be anti-climactic, but you can be sure it’ll be celebratory.
San Francisco Giants Mike Yastrzemski has had success at the plate as he and the Giants prepare to open a three game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers Fri Jul 11, 2025 (AP News file)
San Francisco Giants podcast Michael Villanueva:
#1 Philadelphia Phillies Bryce Harper hit home run and hit for three doubles on Wednesday afternoon as the Phillies upended the San Francisco Giants 13-0 at Oracle Park.
#2 The Phillies Jesus Luzardo struck out seven batters and gave up three hits in seven innings of work as the Giants starter Justin Verlander continues to search for his first win of the season takes the loss.
#3 Verlander now (0-7) at 42 years old pitching in his first season with the Giants had a rough outing his line for the afternoon, four runs (two earned), seven hits, and seven strikeouts, no walks in six innings of work. Verlander who won the Cy Young Award three times just continues to battle to pick up his first win.
#4 The Phils scored an unearned run in the second inning and Harper in the top of the fourth inning crushed his tenth home run to left field as the Phillies poured it on all afternoon.
#5 Friday the Los Angeles Dodgers come to Oracle Park for three games against the Giants. Starting pitcher for the Dodgers RHP Dustin May (5-5 ERA 4.52) for the Giants RHP Logan Webb (8-6, ERA 2.62) first pitch 7:15pm PT.
Sacramento A’s Tyler Soderstrom circles the bases after belting a first inning three run home run off the Atlanta Braves at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento on Thu Jul 10, 2025 (AP News photo)
By Tony Renteria
WEST SACRAMENTO- The Altanta Braves and the Sacramento Athletics who play at Sutter Health Park faced off in the rubber match of this three game series on Thursday night. The temperature at the 6:05 PM first pitch time was 99 degrees.
The Braves were coming off a huge win on Wednesday after a bitter loss to the A’s Tuesday night and came looking to to play some tough baseball and that is exactly what happened on this hot Thursday evening. An 11 inning battle that saw the A’s get a 5-4 victory.
The A’s Started strong in the first inning with a left field double by Brent Rooker, Nick Kurtz followed with a walk, and then a towering three run blast to deep left by Tyler Soderstrom off a curve ball by starting pitcher Spencer Strider that 454 feet in deep right center.
In the top of the fourth Austin Riley lead off with a double, and Sean Murphy traded places with him with a double of his own in the left field pocket along the foul line. Then Jurickson Profar took a JP Sears fastball over the left center field fence to tie it up three to three.
In the top of the seventh the Braves Ozzie Albies hit a home run to to deep right center for a 4-3 lead. In the bottom of the eighth the A’s Nick Kurtz matched that feet with a home run of his own but this time to deep left center.
The game headed to into extra innings, in the bottom on the 11th with Brent Rooker on second, Tyler Soderstrom the hero from the first inning came through again with a single to deep center that brought Rooker in for the winning run.
The Braves head to St. Louis and Busch Stadium to take on the third place St Louis Cardinals, while the A’s host the fist place Toronto Blue Jays who are leading the American League East. Starting pitcher for the Blue Jays RHP Max Scherzer (0-0 ERA 4.76) for the A’s RHP Luis Severino (2-10 ERA 5.30) first pitch at Sutter Health Park 7:05pm PT.
San Francisco Giants starter Justin Verlander still in search of that first win of the season lost to the Philadelphia Phillies on Wed Jul 9, 2025 at Oracle Park in San Francisco (AP News photo)
San Francisco Giants Morris Phillips podcast:
#1 Philadelphia Phillies Bryce Harper hit home run and hit for three doubles on Wednesday afternoon as the Phillies upended the San Francisco Giants 13-0 at Oracle Park.
#2 The Phillies Jesus Luzardo struck out seven batters and gave up three hits in seven innings of work as the Giants starter Justin Verlander continues to search for his first win of the season takes the loss.
#3 Verlander now (0-7) at 42 years old pitching in his first season with the Giants had a rough outing his line for the afternoon, four runs (two earned), seven hits, and seven strikeouts, no walks in six innings of work. Verlander who won the Cy Young Award three times just continues to battle to pick up his first win.
#4 The Phils scored an unearned run in the second inning and Harper in the top of the fourth inning crushed his tenth home run to left field as the Phillies poured it on all afternoon.
#5 Friday the Los Angeles Dodgers come to Oracle Park for three games against the Giants. Starting pitcher for the Dodgers RHP Dustin May (5-5 ERA 4.52) for the Giants RHP Logan Webb (8-6, ERA 2.62) first pitch 7:15pm PT.
Sacramento A’s pitcher Mitch Spence (21) was rocked in six innings of pitching. The Atlanta Braves hit a season high of five home runs and routed the A’s at Sutter Health Field in West Sacramento on Wed Jul 10, 2025 (AP News photo)
Sacramento A’s podcast Tony Renteria:
#1 Ronald Acuna Jr took Sacramento A’s pitching yard twice with a lead off blast off on Wednesday night as the Atlanta Braves crushed Sacramento 9-2 at Sutter Health Field in the second game of the three game set.
#2 Acuna’s two home runs plus three more Braves home runs gives the Braves the most home runs in a game at five.
#3 The Braves 13 game drought in winning in California comes to an end with their win in Sacramento on Wednesday.
#4 A’s starter Mitch Spence got touched up for four runs in the first inning and two in the second his final line after six innings pitched allowed eight hits, nine earned runs, one walk and three strike outs for the loss.
#5 Series is tied at 1-1 as the rubber game will commence at 6:05pm PT Thursday night. It’s a get away game for the Braves who head to St Louis on Friday. The A’s will host the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night. For Thursday night’s starters the Braves will go with RHP Spencer Strider (3-7 ERA 3.93) for the A’s LHP JP Sears (7-7 ERA 4.76).
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
Gio Urshela in the game on Wednesday night against the Atlanta Braves. (Photo: Athletics on X)
By Jeremiah Salmonson
WEST SACRAMENTO — After the drubbing the A’s handed the Braves on Tuesday, Atlanta returned the favor on Wednesday night, defeating the A’s 9-2. With the loss, the A’s fell to 38-56 on the season.
Mitch Spence roughed up early but able to eat innings
A’s starter Mitch Spence had a rough go in the early innings on Wednesday night. He gave up a leadoff home run to Ronald Acuña Jr. on the third pitch of the game, and the Braves didn’t look back. Despite his ineffectiveness, Spence did manage to give the A’s six innings of work. Still, he allowed eight runs on nine hits and was tagged for five home runs in the outing.
“Yeah, I think the stuff overall was down. Obviously, the velo, the cutter wasn’t sharp,” Kotsay said postgame. “So for Spence, [he] just didn’t command the baseball. Balls were up, and you’re going to get hurt anytime you can’t pitch to the bottom of the zone or get something down to the bottom of the zone. And I think that was evident tonight.”
Spence was frustrated with his outing postgame but tried to focus on any positives.
“I made some good pitches, and unfortunately today kind of sucked. I just felt like everything they hit hard was a homer, so [I’m] just trying to take the positives from today.”
A’s offense goes quiet, Soderstrom and Clarke add two hits apiece
Braves starter Bryce Elder had his way with the A’s for most of the night, tossing 6.2 innings and giving up only two runs. The A’s managed eight hits, but Elder did a good job limiting the damage.
Kotsay praised Elder’s game plan in keeping the A’s offense in check.
“I think this is a command pitcher [Elder]. He works on location and setting up pitches, which he did a great job of tonight. He definitely used the sinker in the third down below. That was the biggest difference in the two starters tonight. You could tell that Elder kept the ball down in the zone.”
The bright spots for the A’s offense were Tyler Soderstrom, who went 2-for-4 with a double in the fourth and a single in the sixth while also scoring a run, and Denzel Clarke, who also went 2-for-4 with a double in the fifth and a single in the ninth. It’s a promising development for Clarke, who had struggled early in his career.
Kotsay praised Soderstrom’s efforts through the peaks and valleys as he continues to grow.
“Obviously it was a tough, tougher June in terms of extra-base hits. I think this kid’s battled through it. I think we’re seeing him come out of it where he is definitely making more hard contact, which is a great sign.”
Kotsay also spoke on Clarke’s development.
“For Denzel… we continue to talk about him in his growth, and at the plate tonight, the double is a great swing. He’s continuing to take good at-bats, which is important.”
I spoke to Denzel about how he feels with his at-bats recently and whether he feels like he’s turning a corner. He stressed the impact his teammates have had on him and reminded me that he’s still just a month and a half into his big-league journey—meaning early struggles are to be expected.
“Game’s slowing down for sure. Yeah, I think just naturally as human beings, [when] you put ourselves in any type of situation, we’re going to adapt. I have a great coaching staff and great teammates that have helped me just by being supportive, helping me with great advice… I’m slowly making adjustments to this level, which is really cool. I’m really happy about it, but I mean, it’s been a month and a half, so you can go anywhere from here, so I’ve got to stay consistent, be a good teammate as my teammates have been to me, and listen to the great coaches.”
Rubber game on Thursday
The A’s and Braves will go at it in the final game of the series on Thursday at 6 p.m. PST. The A’s are slated to send JP Sears (7-7, 4.76 ERA) to the hill as the Braves counter with Spencer Strider (3-7, 3.93 ERA).
Jacob Wilson remains day to day. He was seen postgame receiving treatment on his left hand, which was wrapped in a large cloth bandage.
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper slugs a top of the fourth inning home run against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Wed Jul 9, 2025 (AP News photo)
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
Oracle Park
San Francisco, California
Philadelphia Phillies 13 (54-39)
San Francisco Giants 0 (51-43)
Win: Jesus Luzardo (8-5)
Loss: Justin Verlander (0-7)
Time: 2:48
Attendance: 37,334
By Stephen Ruderman
SAN FRANCISCO–Wednesday was a total buzzkill on a beautiful day at Oracle Park, as the Phillies avoided the sweep with a 13-0 rout over the emotionally-hungover Giants in the series finale.
The beautiful but flawed game of baseball works in so many mysterious ways. After going 1-5 against the Marlins and the White Sox, the Giants have gotten back on track in the last week to win six of their last seven games. That included taking the first two games from the Fighten Phils, not just one of the best teams in Baseball, but one of the hottest, too.
The Giants took the opener thanks to two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning Monday night. Tuesday night. What can I say about Tuesday night? It was a win for the ages. Patrick Bailey’s walk-off inside-the-parker will be remembered by Giants’ fans for years, and depending on how this season turns out, generations to come.
Wednesday, the Giants could go for the sweep. However, Justin Verlander was on the mound, and he was still looking for his first win as a Giant in what would be his 15th start of the season. Verlander was lit up in his last start last Friday night in Sacramento, as the Sacramento A’s touched him up for six runs over three innings.
Verlander wasn’t exactly lights out today, but he was much better. He came out of the gate hitting 96 miles per hour with his fastball, as he opened the game with a one, two, three, top of the first inning.
The Phillies got on the board in the top of the second, as J.T. Realmuto hit a base-hit to left field with two outs to knock in Alec Bohm from third base. Earlier in Realmuto’s at-bat, he hit a roller along the first base line that first-baseman Wilmer Flores could have charged and tagged Realmuto out with. However, Wilmer’s decision to let it roll foul proved to be a costly one.
Bryce Harper led off the top of the fourth with an opposite-field home run to left to make it 2-0, but Verlander continued to cruise along. Verlander escaped a jam in the top of the fifth, but the Phillies got to him for two more runs in the top of the sixth to make it 4-0.
Verlander was alright over six innings, as he ended up giving up four runs on seven hits. He didn’t walk anybody, and he struck out seven.
As for the Giants’ offense, they couldn’t muster anything against Phillies’ starter Jesus Luzardo, who gave up just three hits and struck out seven over seven shutout innings.
The Phillies then exploded for seven runs in the top of the eighth to make this thing a laugher. Despite giving up six of the seven runs, you really in all sincerity have to tip your hat to Tristan Beck, who really took a bullet for the Giants’ bullpen Wednesday.
The Fightens then scored two more off Mike Yastrzemski in the top of the ninth. That’s right. Yastrzemski was the poor guy who had to be the position player that pitched in the ninth. Yastrzemski hit Kyle Schwarber with two outs, and Yastrzemski sunk his head in shame, but some in the Phillies’ dugout seemed to get a kick out of it, so no biggie.
Patrick Bailey was rewarded for his triumph last night with the day off Wednesday, but he was given a standing ovation from that remained of the 37,334 fans at Oracle Park today as he pinch-hit to lead off the bottom of the ninth. If anybody’s wondering, Bailey grounded out to second, and the Giants went down one, two, three to end the game.
Jesus Luzardo got the win, and Justin Verlander took the loss.
The Giants fall to 51-43. It’s really not the worst thing in the world, especially after the magic that transpired last night. Still, the Dodgers blew a ninth-inning lead in Milwaukee and were swept by the Brewers, and a win by the Giants Wednesday would have put them just four games back in the National League West.
The Giants will have their first day off in two and a half weeks Thursday, and then they will host the hated ones from down south the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend to close out the first half of the season. The good news is that the Dodgers were just swept in Milwaukee by the Brewers, and have lost six in a row. It will be a spirited series, that’s for sure.
The only question is whether the Giants’ faithful, who have filled up the park this week, can show up this weekend to counter the army of Dodgers’ fans making their way up north.
Once again, Logan Webb (8-6, 2.62 ERA) will have to be the stopper, as he will take the ball in the series opener Friday night. Dustin May (5-5, 4.52 ERA) will go for the Trolley Dodgers.
Nick Kurtz seen rounding the bases on Tuesday night after hitting his first career grand slam. (Photo: Athletics on X)
By Jeremiah Salmonson
WEST SACRAMENTO — The Athletics needed a breakout game. Since clawing their way out of a disastrous May—where they lost 20 of 21 games—the A’s have been stuck in a middling purgatory. Wins have been hard to come by. Since the first week of May, they’ve only claimed series victories against the Orioles, Royals, and Rays. It’s been tough sledding, to say the least.
Still, there have been bright spots: encouraging moments and emerging players who give fans hope for the future. Many of those standouts were on full display Tuesday night when the A’s routed the Braves 10-1 at Sutter Health Park.
Lawrence Butler’s Home Run Prowess
The A’s offense struck early and often, starting with Lawrence Butler. After a slow start to the season, Butler has become one of the top 10 right fielders in baseball and remains a hopeful All-Star replacement candidate. On Tuesday, he opened the game by launching an inside-the-park home run off the right-center field wall, where the ball caromed toward right, allowing him enough time to circle the bases. It was the A’s first regular-season inside-the-parker since Nick Swisher on June 11, 2006.
“I saw it bounce, and that’s when I was like, ‘maybe I’ve got a chance to get all the way around the bases,’” Butler said postgame.
Manager Mark Kotsay praised Butler for setting the tone early.
“It’s great when the offense gets going early,” Kotsay said. “Obviously for Law, he’s the spark plug, really. I mean, he set the tone tonight with the first at-bat and got the energy going… It’s always great to witness an inside-the-park home run.”
Butler wasn’t done. After walking in his second plate appearance, he crushed a Jesse Chavez 90 mph sinker 423 feet over the center-field wall for a traditional home run, giving the A’s a 10-0 lead in the third. The blast came off the bat at 105.5 mph.
Kotsay believes Butler is worthy of All-Star recognition—especially in his hometown of Atlanta.
“I think for Lawrence and the type of year he’s having right now, he definitely deserves that recognition,” Kotsay said. “What I’ve been impressed with is, yeah, he’s had some slides, but for the most part, he’s been pretty consistent around that .250 area. He’s taking his walks—that shows growth, that shows maturity. And then again tonight, he shows you the ability to go dead center, and that tells you a lot about where he’s at as a hitter.”
A’s Bats Don’t Relent
Butler wasn’t the only one swinging a hot bat Tuesday.
Brent Rooker and Max Schuemann each launched two-run homers in the first inning to stake the A’s to a 5-0 lead. Schuemann’s shot left the bat at 106.7 mph and landed on the clubhouse roof in left field. Rooker’s was a line drive over the left-field wall.
The A’s poured it on again in the second, chasing Braves starter Didier Fuentes after he loaded the bases with no outs. Jesse Chavez came in to relieve him, but he was no match for Nick Kurtz, who crushed a 3-2 changeup 403 feet to right-center for a grand slam. It was Kurtz’s first career slam and his 14th home run since debuting April 21. The ball left his bat at 108.5 mph.
Kotsay praised Kurtz’s development and readiness for the big leagues.
“I think the development is in line with why he was promoted, really—why he didn’t spend a ton of time in the minor leagues,” Kotsay said. “We talked about his approach being advanced, and it really is. His preparation is unbelievable. The focus that he has when he gets here to the field on his routines—it takes younger players some time to understand that. But Nick walked right in and understood it from day one… The power is real.”
Nick Kurtz appears to be a special talent—and one A’s fans have the privilege of watching develop at the big-league level night after night.
Springs Effective Without Best Stuff; Bullpen Finishes the Job
Jeffrey Springs didn’t have his best stuff, but he battled through six innings and held the Braves to just one run on six hits while striking out two.
“I think it went pretty well overall,” Springs said. “Honestly, mechanically and stuff, I wasn’t too happy with how I was moving. Not executing to strike very well from the deep counts. Just one of those nights where you’re kind of fighting yourself from pitch one.”
The bullpen finished things off with three scoreless innings. Justin Sterner handled the seventh and eighth, striking out two.
The ninth belonged to Elvis Alvarado, who has bounced between Triple-A and Sacramento this year with mixed results. On Tuesday, he turned in a crisp, seven-pitch scoreless inning.
“It’s one thing to pitch well at Triple-A,” Kotsay said. “When you get here, the roles are different. His role in Triple-A was more of the back end. You get here, you’ve got to earn that… I want to see an inning like that tonight, and that builds confidence for me as well as for Elvis. I think he’s growing into that… Every pitch matters, and we saw that tonight. That inning is going to continue to show me—and build confidence in having him get that opportunity [in the ninth].”
Wilson Avoids Serious Injury
The A’s also received good news postgame: X-rays on Jacob Wilson’s left hand came back negative.
“We did the X-rays. X-rays were negative, which is a great sign,” Kotsay said. “He did get squared up pretty good, so he’ll probably go day to day, and we’ll just evaluate him tomorrow.”
It’s a huge sigh of relief for both the A’s and Wilson, who is set to start at shortstop for the American League in next week’s All-Star Game in Atlanta.
“Big relief. Sigh of relief for sure,” Wilson said. “Just going into that moment, just the anxiety of waiting the 15, 20 minutes after it happened to just wait to see what it was going to be. Obviously, like I said, nothing’s broken, and it could’ve been a lot worse. So everything’s good.”
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
The Sacramento A’s Lawrence Butler (4) circles the bases in the bottom of the third inning for his second home run of the night against the Atlanta Braves at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento on Tue Jul 8, 2025 (AP News photo)
Sacramento A’s podcast Michael Roberson:
#1 Sacramento A’s right fielder Lawrence Butler hit a lead off inside the park home run against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night at Sutter Health Park. It was the first time in 82 years that an A’s player hit a lead off inside the park home run.
#2 For Butler it was his 12th home run of the season and he did it with no one on base. Butler hit the inside the park homer off of Braves starter Didier Fuentes of the right center field fence and the ball took a bounce in right field and got away from the Atlanta outfielders Stuart Fairchild and Eli White.
#3 The A’s All Star starting shortstop Jacob Wilson was hit on the left wrist and had to leave the game. Wilson is also the top candidate for the AL Rookie of the Year.
#4 Butler hit the first of three first inning home runs giving the A’s a 5-0 lead. Brent Rooker and Max Muncy both hit two run homers. For Rooker it was his 19th home run and Muncy hit his eighth home run.
#5 The starting pitchers for Wednesday for the Braves RHP Bryce Elder (2-6 ERA 5.92) and for the A’s RHP Mitch Spence (2-4 ERA 4.06) first pitch 7:05pm PT at Sutter Health Park.
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
San Francisco Giants’ Patrick Bailey, middle right, celebrates with teammates after hitting three-run inside the park home run during the ninth inning of a baseball game to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies in San Francisco, Tuesday, July 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
By Lincoln Juarez
SAN FRANCISCO – Patrick Bailey played hero with his walk-off inside-the-park home run as the Giants took an exhilarating game two from Philadelphia.
Tuesday night the Giants took the field for game two against the Phillies behind their newly-named All-Star starter Robbie Ray. Ray, who got selected to participate in his second career All-Star game on Sunday, is also coming off of one of the best starts of his career last Thursday night. He tossed a complete game for just the second time in his 11 year career, only allowing two runs on three hits and a walk.
Ray got off to another beaming start, setting the Phillies down in order on just eight pitches.
The Giants offense couldn’t match the start of their All-Star southpaw in a scoreless first inning at the plate.
Ray continued his stellar start in the top of the second, carving three K’s into the Phillies lineup (Castellanos, Kemp, Sosa) to keep the game scoreless.
Phillies starter Taijuan Walker, who has worked a lot out of the bullpen this year, went into game two of the series at 3-5 with a 3.64 ERA. Facing a Giants lineup who does particularly well against right-handed starters (40-27), Walker had a tough time keeping them off the scoresheet in the home second.
Yastrzemski walked to lead off the inning and two batters later Jung Hoo Lee executed a hit-and-run to perfection, placing runners on the corners and one out. On the first pitch he saw, Dom Smith sent a check-swing base-hit down the third base line, out of the reach of Alec Bohm.
The Giants led 1-0 after two full.
Philadelphia followed with pressure in the third on a walk issued to nine-hitter Johan Rojas and a 10 pitch at-bat to Trea Turner which resulted in a single to left. Rojas and Turner put Patrick Bailey’s 1.89 pop time to the test and succeeded on the double-steal. With two runners in scoring position, Ray struck out lefty Kyle Schwarber and got Bryce Harper to ground out to Adames at short and kept the Phillies off the board.
Taijuan Walker seemed to settle in by setting the Giants down in order in an eight pitch third inning.
Both starters made quick work of opposing lineups in the fourth. Robbie Ray threw 11 pitches in the fifth to retire the side in order as the Phillies had just two hits after five innings.
Four innings would be all Taijuan Walker saw, going four for the first time since May 30 against Milwaukee. Left-hander Tanner Banks replaced Walker in the fifth against a Giants offense that looked for more than their two hits, one run to that point.
Two more hits were all they would get.
The Phillies bell rang in the sixth as the offense came alive and chased Robbie Ray out of the ballgame. Two free bases (HBP, BB) and two hits allowed Alec Bohm to come around and score the game’s tying run.
Ray departed with two out in the sixth after another quality outing.
Bob Melvin handed the ball to right-hander Spencer Bivens who completed the inning without further damage.
In the seventh, the Phillies tried to build on their emerging offense. Hot off the bench, pinch-hitter Brandon Marsh dropped a single just inside the left-field line and advanced to second base after a bobble by Heliot Ramos.
Two batters later, Kyle Schwarber sent one swimming, 402 ft into McCovey Cove. Philadelphia took a 3-1 lead on Schwarber’s 28th home run of the year.
Into the home eighth, it was still a 3-1 Philadelphia lead. Righty Daniel Robert was the new pitcher who got welcomed to the game with a Heliot Ramos single and Rafael Devers walk that ignited the Oracle Park crowd. It was up to Willy Adames to keep the momentum swinging the Giants’ direction but failed to take advantage of a shaky Robert outing. He struck out swinging on a slider that would’ve been ball four.
Manager Rob Thomson took to the mound to make a change and bring his closer, Jordan Romano in to face Matt Chapman. The righty-righty matchup resulted in a pop-out to second-baseman Edmundo Sosa.
Yastrzemski, the next hitter, put the fans back in their seats with a fly-out to center, ending the Giants threat in the eighth.
After signing a minor league contract with the Giants on June 10, left-hander Scott Alexander made his season debut with the club. He spent the beginning of the year with Colorado going 1-1 with a 6.06 ERA in 19 relief appearances. The Giants expect him to bring some veteran experience to the bullpen in his second stint with the team (2022-23).
Following a two-out double by Schwarber and a walk to Bryce Harper, he was dismissed from his outing by manager Bob Melvin, to play the match-up game with righty Ryan Walker set to face righty Alec Bohm.
One pitch later, Bohm was retired on a 3-1 put-out.
Casey Schmitt started the home ninth with a rocket double down the left-field line. Two batters later Wilmer Flores singled to center. Matt Williams held Schmitt at third base with the winning run due up in Patrick Bailey with one out.
On the first pitch he saw, Bailey launched one off the bricks in right-center field. Inches away from a normal walk-off home run, the ball ricocheted along the warning track all the way to dead center field. Center fielder Brandon Marsh had to chase it down and Bailey was on the move. Right behind Schmitt and pinch-runner Brett Wisely, Bailey crossed the plate on the walk-off inside-the-park home run.
Electrifying the Oracle Park crowd the Giants celebrated the first inside-the-park walk-off home run in MLB since CLE’s Tyler Naquin in 2016 vs. Toronto, and the second by a Giant since the start of 1932, with the other being Angel Pagan’s vs. Colorado back in 2013.
When asked about the team’s ability to produce late and never feel out of a game, Bailey described it with the oh-so familiar slogan from the Giants last winning season in 2021 (107-55, NL West champions), “resilient”.
Resiliency is exactly what the Giants have shown in this recent stretch. Winners of six of their last seven and now just five games behind the Dodgers, who lost their fifth in a row Tuesday night in Milwaukee, the men in orange and black have given this fanbase a lot of hope heading into the final half of the season.
The upcoming weekend series against the Dodgers gets more intriguing by the day, but the Giants aim to take care of business with the potential to sweep the NL East leading Phillies with Justin Verlander on the mound still looking for his first win in 2025.
Win or lose Wednesday afternoon, Tuesday night’s win will keep the energy high for days to come.
Game three, Luzardo (7-5) vs. Verlander (0-6) Wednesday at Oracle Park, first pitch 12:45.
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